News

Letter: Conservation Commission Marks Passing of Andrew Clarkson

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To the Editor,

All of us on the New Canaan Conservation Commission were sorry to hear about Andrew Clarkson’s recent passing. His philanthropic activities, as administered through the Jeniam Foundation, have always provided the right help at the right time, and his strong dedication to conservation and community enhancement has been extremely beneficial to our town. Thanks to support from the Jeniam Foundation, the Conservation Commission was able to procure our most recent Open Space Map for the Town of New Canaan, and the Foundation has always been open to listening to our plans and initiatives. On behalf of all us, and of the town in which we serve, we thank Andrew for his many years of wise generosity. Sincerely,

Cam Hutchins—Chairman

Susan Sweitzer—Secretary

Linda Andros, Heather Lauver and Robin O’Connell—Commissioners

News

NCHS Seniors Thank Parent Post-Prom Volunteers for Wonderful Night

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In New Canaan, Senior Prom Night is more than a few awkward pictures taken by parents as high schoolers make their way out the door and onto the dance floor. Many of the memories of Senior Prom begin after the prom is over at the Annual Post Prom held at the Waveny House. Last Friday night, the doors opened at 11:59 p.m. and food, games, shows, and raffles continued on until the sun was rising at 5 a.m. The theme of the night was Flashback Friday in which the seniors were taken on a journey through their childhood in New Canaan. The New Canaan High School class of 2015 would like to thank all of the parents that spent over a year putting together this unforgettable night. The event was organized by Post Prom Chairs Whitney Legard Williams, Cam Hutchins, and Sue Kammler, along with many other parent volunteers.

News

No Idling: NCHS Friends of the Earth Club Works for Cleaner Air and a Better New Canaan

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Idling cars are a major pet peeve for New Canaan High School sophomore Will Santora. The 15-year-old is aware that it’s illegal in Connecticut to idle a motor vehicle for more than three minutes, yet he estimates that up to 80 percent of the cars that back up at the NCHS lot when school lets out are idling. “You waste gas, you waste money, you are polluting—and all for no reason,” Santora said from Room 115 at the high school on a recent afternoon, surrounded by a half-dozen likeminded sophomores and juniors. “You don’t need to leave your car running at all. And people sometimes just forget to turn off their car or they don’t realize it’s going, so that is a big issue because it does pollute a lot and if you idle for more than 10 seconds, you are already starting to waste gas.”

In the next month or so, Santora and this group of high school teens—together they are the Friends of the Earth Club, an extracurricular group—will purchase and install a “no idling” sign on school grounds.

Around Town

Town Tradition Fading: Six Years Since New Canaan Had Ice Skating on Mead or Mill Pond

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It was Dec. 31, 1993, and this thought came to Cam Hutchins as he—3-month-old daughter in his arms, bundled up in a snuggie—followed the sound of a slapshot toward Mead Pond, where dozens of ice skaters wobbled or glided over a frozen sheet of ice, illuminated by parking lot lights and set that New Year’s Eve against a backdrop of Christmas lights: “As she gets older, we can do this.”

“This” being a cherished New Canaan tradition: Ice skating on Mead or Mill Pond. Hutchins, a 1977 New Canaan High School graduate, recalls the fires burning in the Lions Den at Mill Pond during his Center School days. “All winter long, it seemed like we were always going to Mill Pond,” he recalled. “Skating there on the weekends was a big deal.

News

Senior Night: State Tournament-Bound NCHS Soccer Team Plays Final Regular Season Game

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Lisa O’Rourke’s son Jack, a senior captain of last year’s New Canaan High School varsity soccer team, had been on the side that won states as a freshman. This year, her son Ted is a tri-captain on the same team, and what a bookend it would be to see the state tournament-qualifying squad win that title again this season. If the Rams have a secret weapon headed into the CIAC tourney, it may be their chemistry: Most of the 17 seniors on the team have been playing soccer together with the New Canaan Soccer Association since their youth travel days. “They’re together in school and on the field and they really don’t need to look where they are,” O’Rourke said Wednesday from the stands at Dunning Field on Senior Night, moments before the Rams squared off for their final regular season game against Stamford High School. “They know where they are with respect to passing.